Taiwan is a mountainous island in the South
China Sea,
about 175 km (110 mi.) off the Chinese mainland. The forested beauty of
the island led Portuguese sailors in 1590 to call it Ilha Formosa,
meaning “Beautiful
Island.” The Tropic of Cancer passes through the southern part of the
island.

Tuesday,
May 8 - Taipei
to Huisun

After picking up the participants in Taipei, the airport and
Changhua we headed to our first birding stop in the Wufeng area, at 400 m
(1,300 feet elevation), where we usually are able to get a good look at
Fairy Pitta, but not this time. We did see Oriental Cuckoo, though and
[Taiwan] Hwamei, an endemic subspecies which is expected to be elevated to
full species status in the near future. This stop also gave us our first
Vinous-throated Parrotbill, Rufous-capped Babbler, Black-naped Monarch,
Gray Treepie and Streak-breasted Scimitar-Babbler.

After buying picnic-lunch supplies at a Family Mart we
continued on to Huisun National Forest Recreation Area (770 m; 2,600 ft).
Stopping at the park gate, we located Maroon Oriole and FORMOSAN MAGPIE;
a month earlier, both species were tending nests there. We also saw the
first of many [Taiwan] Black-browed Barbets, another endemic subspecies
expected to be recognized as a full endemic species. After checking into
our rooms in the Atayal Resort, we birded the grounds. Some of the group
headed uphill to try for Swinhoe’s Pheasant; others stayed below. Just
before supper, the pheasant-searchers returned and reported their lack of
success. After supper; a Mountain Scops-Owl was calling just outside our
rooms and was glimpsed when it flew to another tree. A calling Brown
wood-Owl remained concealed on the hillside in spite of our efforts to
locate it.

Wednesday, May 9 - Huisun to Chingjing

The pheasant-searchers headed up the mountain very early; returning at
breakfast-time, unfortunately having found no pheasants. In the meantime,
the rest of the group birded the area around the main visitor center. Two
family groups of FORMOSAN MAGPIES were busy. A distant Large
Hawk-Cuckoo and Taiwan Partridge called from the forest. We drove down to
another part of the reserve where we watched for birds while having
coffee. We saw Gray Treepie and Varied Tit before moving on.

Our afternoon destination was Aowanda National Forest
Recreation Area. Stops along the way gave us more Streak-breasted
Scimitar-Babblers, Collared Finchbill, Besra, Gray-faced Buzzard, Crested
Serpent-Eagle, Common and Javan Myna Acridotheres javanicus. Both
Common and Javan Myna (sometimes called White-vented Myna) were
introduced, the latter becoming increasingly widespread to the detriment
of the native Crested Myna.

Arriving at Aowanda, some of the group headed for the
waterfalls of Naoliao Creek, finding Plumbeous Redstart, Little Forktail
and FORMOSAN WHISTLING-THRUSH. Others stayed below, seeing Varied
Tit, Gray-capped Woodpecker, Eurasian Nuthatch, Green-backed Tit, Vivid
Niltava, and Gray-chinned Minivet. We added another person to our group,
Judia Tung of the Nantou Forest District, who would be our local guide for
three days.

We left Aowanda and climbed higher to the town of Chingjing,
at elev. 1,750 m (5,740 ft.), and the mountainside Chingjing Resort.

Thursday,
May 10 - Chingjing

After an early “birders’ breakfast” at 5 a.m, we set off for
Blue Gate Trail #1, one of the Rueiyan River Trails. The weather had been
unusually dry for a couple of weeks, reducing the mud and puddles on the
trail. Nevertheless, we were glad of the rubber boots that we borrowed
from the resort. The bright, sunny morning apparently wasn’t to the
pheasants’ liking, and none were found, although we heard TAIWAN
PARTRIDGE. Endemics were STEERE’SLIOCICHLA,
TAIWAN
YUHINA, WHITE-EARED SIBIA.
We had good looks at a small party of White-throated Laughingthrushes,
White-tailed Robin, Rufous-capped Babbler, Green-backed and Black-throated
Tits, Rufous-faced Warbler and Snowy-browed Flycatcher. Small birds began
to scold something only they could see in a dense low tree upslope from
the trail; after a while, the object of their harassment, a Collared
Owlet, flew out, but only one person saw the tiny owl before it
disappeared back into shadows. Out along the sunny Highway 14 roadside,
colourful Byasa polyeuctes termessus butterflies were quite active.

After lunch at the Resort, birding from the patio and play
with Shao-mi, the energetic family dog, we returned to the forest and Blue
Gate Trail #2. We found more of the same species we saw in the morning,
plus Vivid Niltava, Ferruginous Flycatcher, White-browed Shortwing (seen,
at last,) and good looks at Pygmy Wren-Babbler in a sunny spot in the
undergrowth. We returned to Chingjing Resort for supper and the night.

Friday,
May 11 - Chingjing toTienshiang

Back to Blue Gate Trail #1 in the early morning, but still no
pheasants, so we moved on up to the Hehuanshan Forest Recreation Area and
Wuling Pass (“Big Wind”), elev. 3,275 m (10,750 ft.), just inside the
western edge of Taroko National Park. There were WHITE-WHISKERED
LAUGHINGTHRUSHES in the parking lot; COLLARED BUSH-ROBINS, TAIWAN
BUSH-WARBLER
(heard but unseen) and Winter Wren on the slope below, and a single Alpine
Accentor on the road as we drove on. The Accentors go to higher
elevations to nest and can be hard to find in spring. Behind and down
slope from the Hohuan Youth Hostel, were more WHITE-WHISKERED
LAUGHINGTHRUSHES, Vinaceous Rosefinches, Brownish-flanked
Bush-Warblers and a FLAMECREST. We had a simple lunch at the
Visitor Center at Shaofongkou (“Little Wind Gap”) and continued down the
road to the east.

A stop at an abandoned resort at Cihen produced Gray-headed
Bullfinches, TAIWAN
YUHINAS, WHITE-EARED SIBIAS,
a Ferruginous Flycatcher and Gray-chinned Minivet. We kept driving down,
to the spectacular Marble Gorge, considered one of East Asia’s scenic
wonders. There were no Brown Dippers or Little Forktails to be found
along the Liwu River this time, but there were FORMOSAN
WHISTLING-THRUSHES, Plumbeous Redstarts and Blue Rock-Thrush, as well
as many Fork-tailed Swifts going to and from nests in the rock face. We
continued on to the Leader Taroko Hotel in Tienshiang, elev. 485 m (1,595
ft.). Mountain Scops-Owls called all night.

Saturday,
May 12 - Tienshiang to Chihpen

Following breakfast, we left the hotel and continued east. We
walked part of the Shakadang Trail, very scenic, but there were too many
other people (a non-birding tour group) for best results. We looked for
Brown Dipper and Little Forktail along the Shakadang River. There was a
party of eight TAIWAN MACAQUES in trees across the river.

We left the park and drove south on Highway #9. STYAN’S
BULBULS were common. Another Blue Rock-Thrush perched atop a statue
of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, in Hualien. Maroon Oriole is scarce everywhere in
Taiwan, so we were surprised to see a male fly across the highway in front
of our bus.

Near Chihshang, we detoured through the property of the Taiwan
Sugar Company, looking for the native subspecies of Ring-necked Pheasant.
We found 14.

Our destination for the end of the day was Chihpen National
Forest Recreation Area (noted for its hot
springs)
and the Chihpen (Jhihben) River. We walked around the tourist area in the
after-supper darkness, hearing Mountain Scops-Owl and Collared Owlet.

Sunday,
May 13 - Chihpen to Hungtou, Lanyu
Island

Before breakfast, we found two Brown Dippers in the shallows
of the Chihpen River, and several Javan Mynas as well as STYAN’S
BULBULS, in the resort village. A distant Fairy Pitta called from
across the river, as did a TAIWAN PARTRIDGE and Chinese
Bamboo-Partridge.

In the late morning, under darkening clouds, we drove to the
airport in Taitung city for our 12:45 p.m., 20-minute flight to Lanyu
Island. On landing, we noted that there had been very recent rain; not
surprising, as the rainy season normally begins in May, and so far, the
month had been unusually dry. After checking into our hotel, we drove to
“Flycatcher Creek” for a short hike over the rocks in the dry creek bed to
find Japanese Paradise-Flycatcher. After returning to our van, we saw two
more females of that species flying back and forth across the road,
collecting nesting materials. In the late afternoon, we saw a “fly-by”
Ruddy Kingfisher, Philippine Cuckoo-Dove, Whistling Green-Pigeon,
Brown-eared Bulbul, Lesser Coucal, an Emerald Dove on the road, a Barred
Buttonquail running through a taro field, and an Oriental Pratincole in
the air.

We went owling after supper, and saw a “Lanyu” Scops-Owl, a
subspecies of Ryukyu Scops-Owl that is endemic to Lanyu Island. We also
noted many toads on the road, making their way in the same direction.
Stopping to investigate, we saw that they were Spectacled Toads Bufo
melanostictus, a common species of southern Asia.
As this was their breeding season, they were apparently heading for pools
and puddles between the road and the sea.

Monday,
May 14 - Lanyu Island to Kenting

Out for roadside birding at 5:30 a.m: Emerald Dove on the road, again;
White-breasted Waterhen, Blue Rock-Thrush, Pacific Reef-Heron, Little
Egret, Cattle Egret, and Common Sandpiper were noted. The female Japanese
Paradise-Flycatchers were still collecting nesting materials along the
road near Flycatcher Creek.

We had close-up looks at a small lizard, endemic Swinhoe’s Japalura

For the return trip from Lanyu to Taiwan Island, we boarded
the ferry for the 10:30 sailing. It is a fast ferry, foot passengers only
(no autos), covering the 77 km (48 mi.) distance to the Eluanbi (Oluanpi)
Peninsula in 2.5 hours. On the way, we saw Matsudiara’s Storm-Petrels,
Streaked Shearwaters, Wedge-tailed Shearwaters, Short-tailed Shearwater,
Bulwer’s Petrels, and a Brown Booby which followed the ferry for several
minutes.

After docking on the sheltered inside of Eluanbi peninsula,
and boarding our bus which had gone there to meet us, we drove to the
Kenting Youth Activity Center where we would spend the night. We checked
in, then headed out again. We were very surprised to encounter a rare
Black-naped Oriole near the entrance to Sheding Nature Park.At
Long Luan Tan (Lake), Kenting (Kending) National Park, were an Osprey,
Zitting Cisticola, Lesser Coucal, Spot-billed Duck, Oriental Skylark,
Ruddy-breasted Crake, Oriental Reed-Warbler and Nutmeg Mannikin. After
supper in Kenting, some of the group opted for a walk through the night
market.

Tuesday,
May 15 - Kenting to Kuangtselin

In the morning, we headed north, past Tainan, to the Sihcao Reserve where,
by special arrangement, we visited the pond where 11 Black-faced
Spoonbills lingered; the rest of the wintering flock of 579 having
departed for their breeding area in Korea. While there, we found 2
Chinese Egrets, a rare spring transient in Taiwan. Also present were
Snowy Plover, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Curlew
Sandpiper, Common Greenshank, Spotted Redshank, Black-winged Stilt and
Black-tailed Godwit.

On the way to Sihcao, we had stopped briefly in the town of
Madou to investigate the ornate Sanyen Tseng Ching temple, built during
the Ching (Qing) Dynasty (1644 - 1911 A.D).

The last stop of the afternoon was at Kwantien Reserve for
Pheasant-tailed Jacana; one pair in mating mode. Also, there were 6
Oriental Pratincoles. We continued inland to Kuangtselin for the night.

Wednesday, May 16 - Kuangtselin to Kwanghua

Just around the corner from the hotel is a public park where
some of the group saw Malayan Night-Heron.

From Kuangtselin, it was a short trip to the Tsengwen Dam. We
walked the road to the dam; along the way were Spot-breasted and
Streak-breasted Scimitar-Babbler, Black-browed Barbet, Gray-cheeked
Fulvetta, White-bellied Yuhina, and overhead were Crested Serpent-Eagle
and Besra.

The group chose to forego some of the planned wetland birding
in order to have more time in the mountains. We continued driving up, on
the way toward Alishan, stopping at Kwanghua, elev. 1,000 m (3,300 ft.),
near Shihjhuo. After checking into the Fireflies B & B in the late
afternoon, we went up the very steep road into the forest where we spread
out and watched for whatever birds might come along. We hoped especially
for Swinhoe’s Pleasant and/or Taiwan Partridge. WHITE-EARED SIBIA,
White-tailed Robin, Rusty Laughingthrush, Rufous-capped Babbler and Rufous-faced
Warbler were seen. After a while, a male SWINHOE’S PHEASANT slowly
walked across the road, in view of only one person. A while later, at
dusk, three participants found three TAIWAN PARTRIDGES feeding at
the road edge. It was too dark to see anything else then, so we all
returned to the Fireflies and supper.

After supper, our host, Mr. Liu Chia-shieh led us up and down
the road again to see Hairy-footed Flying Squirrel and White-faced Flying
Squirrel (endemic sub-species] in the trees. On the way back to the
hotel, a Crab-eating Mongoose ran across the road.

Thursday,
May 17 - Kwanghua to Alishan

Some of the group went back up the steep road at 4:30 a.m. to
try again for pheasants, but without success. After lunch, we departed
the Fireflies and continued up to Alishan National Forest Recreation Area
in intermittent rain.

After checking into the Alishan Youth Activity Center, we
birded the area around the center and Erwanping Railway Station (Alishan
Forest Railway). We heard TAIWAN BUSH-WARBLER close by in the
undergrowth, but we could not see it. We did see Brown Bullfinch,
Eurasian Jay, and Eurasian Nuthatch.

Friday,
May 18 - Alishan

At 4:45 a.m.,
we set off for Yushan National Park, hoping to find MIKADO PHEASANT
along the road. With our driver’s advice, were lucky to find a pair, with
the male allowing good views before he walked into the forest. In the
Tataka Recreation Area in Yushan N. Park, we found more WHITE-WHISKERED
LAUGHINGTHRUSHES, TAIWAN BUSH-WARBLER (decent looks, at last,
as it “hid” under long grass stems), COLLARED BUSH-ROBINS (two
families with chicks), Vinaceous Rosefinch, Yellowish-bellied
Bush-Warbler, Streak-throated Fulvetta, two White-backed Woodpeckers and
Eurasian Nutcracker.

After a noodle-soup lunch at the Visitor Center, we returned
to our hotel. On the way, Hector spotted another MIKADO PHEASANT,
a female, along the road. During the afternoon, while most of the group
napped, Hector found two TAIWAN BARWINGS.

Saturday,
May 19 - Alishan to Changhua

There were thunder storms overnight. We did a brief bird walk
after breakfast, but didn’t find more Barwings or Taiwan Tit. A
Snowy-browed Flycatcher appeared briefly along the road. We left Alishan
and headed down the mountain in more rain, stopping for a tea break at
Shihjhuo, enjoying locally-grown, finest-quality Alishan oolong tea,
elaborately prepared in the traditional manner.

In the afternoon, we went to Huben village to make another try
for Fairy Pitta. We knew that pittas were present in the lowland forest,
but we still could not see any after considerable effort, although we
heard a distant call. Local researchers told us that the birds arrived
late, very quickly began courting and nesting, and now were silent and
unresponsive, a little earlier than usual. We gave up and continued on to
Changhua and the Formosa Hotel.

Sunday,
May 20 - Changhua to Taipei

The seasonal rains had arrived in earnest; rain all night and
almost all this day. Leaving Changhua, we drove north into Hsinchu
County. Our knowledgeable bus driver, Mr. Fong, knew that Fairy Pitta
nested in the forest in the Tchonglin town area, near his home. This was
our last day and last hope for Fairy Pitta; but unfortunately, it was not
to be. We heard one pitta call, but it refused to appear. We did get
good looks at a juvenile Collared Scops-Owl, Common Kingfisher, Black-naped
Monarch, female Mandarin Duck on the pond, and Crested Goshawk in a tree.

We continued to Sanshia to see the famous Tsu-tze Temple (the
“Bird Temple”) where there were hundreds of birds carved in stone. We had
lunch and strolled along the artisans’ street before proceeding into
Taipei to the Chinese Handicraft Mart for some shopping. The last event
was a farewell supper hosted by Legislator Tien Chiu-chin. Then it was
time to go to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, and the tour
concluded.